7 Things Bill DeMott's Resignation Tells Us About Corporate WWE

3. You Don't Have To Be A Stereotypical "Tough Guy Wrestler" To Wrestle Anymore

The big takeaway from trainees not being agreeable with being beaten up and hazed in training is that we're in an era where athleticism and mainstream marketability (past having big muscles) are more important than stereotypical "toughness" in pro wrestling. Wrestling was once the industry that people got into because they wanted fast money, or were such hard-nosed societal pariahs that having a "normal" job would seem impossible. Now, WWE is a publicly-traded corporation where industry-minded men in gray suits or athletic, DIY-driven hipsters seeking non-traditional employment earn salaries and have "personal brands" and "marketing strategies." The days of "get on the gas, then get some color, bang some rats, and we'll sell a s**t -ton of t-shirts" is dead.